SHSMD U Unit 3, August 2013

1. Unit 3
SHSMD University
August 20, 2013

2. • Four sessions
– Deal basics (Session 1)
• Structure
• Timeline
• Political thinking
– Ten Rules for Healthcare M&A
• The Campaign Strategy (Session 2)
• The Campaign Plan and Efforts (Session 3)
– Troubleshooting theTough Spots (Session 4)

3. • Last 5 Rules of Hospital M&A
• Theme:The Campaign Plan and Efforts
– Own the Message
– The Messenger is a Message
– Get theTalk Right Inside,Then Out
– An Army of Advocates
– Overcommunicate

4. Keys:
Flexibility Consistency Coordination Commitment

5. • Partnerships are complex; messages can’t be
• Translate tactical benefits into a vision
• Emotion is critical
• Never, ever, ever forget the patient
• Joint with the buyer/seller sends a signal
MESSAGE

6. Threat
- Context
- Status quo must change
- Current situation or
anticipatory action
- Must be credible
- Can be done for a year
- Lays the ground work
- A story of future success
- Big-picture & close-up
- Operational, aspirational
and community-based
- Vision is separate for the
specific transaction
- What changes; what stays
- Provides clarity
- Answers what employees
care about most
Vision Solution

7. • Develop messages on a one-pager with:
– 3 main take-aways that summarize your entire message
– 4-5 Bullet points for each theThreat,Vision and Solution
• Avoid the “curse of knowledge”
• Think like a political campaign
• Gain consensus from campaign team on this
one-pager
• Basic foundation for every communication to
come

8. • Your message is more than your words
• Most powerful communications are non-verbal
• Trust is most critical characteristic of your
messenger
• How a person delivers a message can change
the message
• It takes a coordinated, trained team
MESSAGE SPOKESTEAM

9. • Candidates
– CEO – main media spokes, messenger to staff
– CMO – messenger to docs, clinical voice to
community
– Board chair – messenger to community leaders
– Another trusted individual with community
stature

10. • Equip them
– Train
• Jointly
• To the core messages
• To performance
• To media
– Give them a detailed, confidential Q&A document
to answer tough questions consistently
– Hold a practice FAQ session

11. • What physicians and nurses say matters
– Inside to colleagues
– Outside to patients
• At this point, confidentiality is lost. It’s out!
MESSAGE SPOKESTEAM AUDIENCES

12. • Key steps with internal audiences
– Talk internally first and often
– Give them tools
– Turn them into advocates

13. • Internal
Board
Leadership
Staff
Physicians
Volunteers
Foundation Board /
Members
Community Board
Members
• External
Patients
Media
Elected officials
Community leaders
Religious leaders
Vendors
Large donors
Labor unions
Regulatory authorities
Break down internal audiences into key subgroups
(ie: clinical leadership vs. front-line)

14. • Sometimes, your greatest advocates are not
on your payroll
• Extra set of eyes, ears and hands
• Long-term advocates can
– Boost reputation
– Offer third party credibility
– Give people a “job”
– Neutralize the opposition
– Speak when and what you can’t
MESSAGE SPOKESTEAM AUDIENCES ADVOCATES

15. • Who to engage
– Community leaders
– Loyal patients
– Credible community voices
• How to engage
– Ask their advice
– Listen to them – individually and as a group
– Give clear action items
– Give them freedom

16. • Levels of engagement
– Active listening and intelligence gathering
– Public, get-out-the-vote efforts
– Post-announcement involvement
• Can operate as a small group or large crowd
• Can join with internal advocates
• Give them license to act

17. • Balancing act: Informative vs. Distracting
• You are competing for attention
• “Me first” communications. People want:
– Assurance of safety for their family and colleagues
– Conversation
– Details, which matter next
MESSAGE SPOKESTEAM AUDIENCES ADVOCATES VEHICLES &
TIMELINE

18. • Coordinate the vehicles
• Give it a theme, brand
• Fill the communication vacuum so others
don’t
– Reinforce messages in multiple vehicles
– Accessible information
– Providing updates even when there’s no new
news
– “I don’t know” is acceptable…until you do know

19. • Holding statement
• Core messages
• Talking points
– Leadership
– Managers and directors
– Board members
• Press releases
• Dedicated deal website
• FAQs
– For public
– For leadership
• Updates to your
current site
• Letters to every core
audience
• Scripts

20. • The “hub” of your campaign information
• Stand-alone site sends a signal
• Simple, informational and accessible
– Unblock it at the hospital
– Media will rely on it
• Employee-devoted section
• Linked to your site, and all social media
• “Ask A Question” feature

22. Timeline
• 48-hour timeline
– Begins with day before announcement to ensure
all final approvals completed
– Hour-by-hour through announcement day events
• Meetings, town halls, external visits
• Calls to be made
• Outreach to media
– Ends with day-after-announcement campaign
team meeting to triage media and feedback
• Tracks action, assigns responsibility

23. • Online Discussion questions:
– Talk about the difference between the deal details and the vision for
the deal? How do you describe them differently to audiences?
– What is a key audience for your system that may need a unique
spokesperson and specific communication vehicle?
– What is a communication vehicle that can work for your system to “fill
the vacuum” even if there are no new updates?

24. • Troubleshooting
• What do you need us to cover?